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the meeting
and appointed the Archbishop of Canterbury to represent him; and the
Archbishop, knowing that his master King Richard was devoted to the Lusignans,
refused to pronounce the annulment. He mentioned Conrad’s previous marriage and
declared that a marriage between Conrad and Isabella would be doubly
adulterous. But the Archbishop of Pisa, who was Papal Legate, had been won over
to Conrad’s cause, on the promise, it was said, of trade concessions for his
countrymen; and the Bishop of Beauvais, who was King Philip’s cousin, used the
Legate’s backing to secure a general agreement for Isabella’s divorce, and
himself married her to Conrad on 24 November 1190. The Lusignan supporters were
furious at a marriage that abolished Guy’s right to the throne; and King
Richard’s vassals from England, Normandy and Guienne gave them full sympathy.
But Archbishop Baldwin, their chief spokesman, after hurling excommunications
on everyone connected with the affair, had died suddenly on 19 November. The
English chroniclers did all that they could to blacken Conrad’s memory. Guy
himself went so far as to challenge Conrad to single combat; but Conrad,
knowing that legitimate right was now on his side, refused to admit that the
case could be discussed any more. The Lusignans might call it cowardice. But
all that had the future of the kingdom at heart realized that if the royal line
was to be continued, Isabella must remarry and have a child; and Conrad, the
saviour of Tyre, was the obvious choice for her. The newly wedded pair retired
to Tyre, where, next year, Isabella gave birth to a daughter, called Maria
after her Byzantine grandmother. Conrad, correctly, would not take the title of
king till he and his wife should be crowned, but, as Guy refused to abdicate
any of his rights, he would not return from Tyre to the camp.
    1191: Famine in the Frankish Camp
    The tribulations of the Crusaders
continued throughout the winter months. Saladin’s reinforcements had arrived
from the north, and the Frankish camp was now closely invested. No food could
come by land, nor, during the winter months, could much be landed on the
inhospitable coast, whereas Saracen ships could sometimes fight their way into
the shelter of Acre harbour. Amongst the lords that died of sickness in the
camp were Tibald of Blois and his brother, Stephen of Sancerre. On 20 January
1191, Frederick of Swabia died, and the German soldiers found themselves
leaderless, though his cousin, Leopold of Austria, who arrived from Venice
early in the spring, tried to rally them under his banner. Henry of Champagne
was for many weeks so ill that his life was despaired of. Many of the soldiers,
especially the English, blamed Conrad for their misery, because he was dallying
at Tyre and refused to come to their aid. But, whatever his motive may have
been, it is hard to see what else he could have done; the camp was sufficiently
crowded without him. Now and then an attempt was made to scale the walls,
notably on 31 December, when the wreck of a Saracen relief-ship at the harbour
entrance was distracting the garrison. It failed; nor were the Crusaders able
to profit by a collapse of part of the land-wall six days later. There were
many deserters to the Moslems. Thanks to their help and to his excellent
spy-system, Saladin was able to send a force to break through the Crusader lines
on 13 February, with a fresh commander and garrison to relieve the weary
defenders of the city. But he hesitated himself to make a final attack on the
Christian camp. Many of his troops were weary, and when reinforcements arrived
he sent detachments away to rest. The misery amongst the Christians seemed to
be doing his work for him.
    He was once again unwise in his
forbearance. As Lent approached it seemed that the Franks could not long
survive. In their camp a silver penny bought only thirteen beans or a single
egg, and a sack of corn cost a hundred pieces of gold. Many of the best horses
were